We're A Happy Family
by purplemud
Summary: Haley receives an invitation to the grand 60th Wedding Anniversary of her grandparents. Let the madness begin. Laley, Baley friendship, Naley and some Brucas
1. Chapter 1

**We're A Happy Family**

By Grace

Email: purplewitch10yahoo(dot)com

Standard disclaimers apply. Me don't own.

Pairing: Laley and Baley friendship. Naley and some Brucas. I do like Peyton, I just can't seem to fit her in this story.

Rating: PG 13

Spoilers: Some Season 3 (What-if sort of Season 3 episode)

Summary: Haley receives an invitation to the grand 60th Wedding Anniversary of her grandparents. Let the madness begin.

Author's note: Sort of sequel to The Shapes of Things To Come

**Part One: It's A Long Way Back**

It wasn't fair. The universe was conspiring against her. She went on a rock tour and abandoned her husband, fine, she deserved to be punished for that, in fact she was already being punished and she had no problem with the whole Appeasing the Gods of Karma and Nathan _thing_. But this was just cruel and completely unnecessary.

Haley stared at the answering machine for another five seconds, trying to mentally delete the message that had just turned her already bad day into a real suck-fest. She rewound the tape, pressed play again, hoping that she had misheard the whole thing. She probably was just hallucinating.

Too many meals missed and severe lack of sleep.

Right. That's what it was.

For her sanity's sake, she listened once more:

"Hey little sis, I sent you the invitation, like, a week ago, which is like totally weird, by the way, seeing it's a family event and we all know we're all going, but still, it's RSVP and no response from you yet. Not even a call to say yes or yes, because you better not say no. I am not going to be the talk of the whole tribe this time around. Better show up and enjoy it while it lasts. And oh, yeah, by the way, grandma thinks you married little Lucas Scott. Isn't that just hilarious? I didn't bother correcting her though, since you'll be at the must-not-miss James family night of drama and debauchery. You can tell her yourself that she's got the wrong brother. Better yet bring the right one. See you and Nate in Atlanta or die."

"Atlanta huh?"

If she hadn't been so upset, Haley would've jumped in surprise. She had always been sort of jumpy and easily spooked and Lucas just loved to sneak around, give her little heart attacks. And then there's Tigger, who's notoriously bouncy, literally bouncy, and who also just happen to have a way of slinking all over the house, all oh-so quiet and catlike.

It was a little unnerving, to be honest.

Haley was used to living with the sound and feel of Nathan's heavy footsteps inside the small apartment. And before that, she lived in a house that was filled with incessant yelling, slamming of doors, trampling, running and stumbling about. The Whole James Household of Chaos Concerto on Creaky Wooden Floors. Now it was Brooke, appearing, seemingly out of thin air, usually dressed to kill, letting her know she'd be out the whole night and that there was no need to wait up for her.

Of course she would always end up waiting for Brooke. The girl needed a keeper. Granted that Brooke had Peyton but a keeper shouldn't be as half-drunk as the keepee. Maybe Peyton needed a keeper too. But then again, Peyton wasn't really speaking to her and if she was it was only to remind her of her fantastic screw up, so Haley was keeping a safe distance even though it hurt her to have her friendship with Peyton disintegrate before it had the chance to really deepen. Another punishment-and-or-slash-consequence she has to deal with.

And anyway, this was nothing new to her. When she was younger she used to wait up all night for Taylor, who would be out partying, de-virginizing freshmen jocks, apparently.

Haley winced at that. Well, that still stung. She guessed that it will always feel like a little punch in the stomach so she therefore should avoid thinking about it. Focus on the now.

She let out a huge sigh, mutinously stabbing the erase button with her finger, watching with satisfaction as Taylor's voice got permanently, electronically deleted. She was supposed to be dead tired by now. After a long shift at the café, she was supposed to be on the verge of sleep or something closer to catatonia. Trust Taylor to ruin her chance at some semblance of rest and peace. Sometimes, she wished… well, she wished Taylor had been a boy. She could've dealt with another over-protective older brother. A slutty sister was just exhausting.

"Going out?" Haley asked glancing at Brooke who had just come out of the shower.

"As always." Brooke sing-songed, her red-painted lips curved in a pleased smile. "There's a party over at Bevin's and I need to look extra hot."

As before with Taylor, she once made the mistake of lecturing Brooke on what a School Night meant and that had been a very bad idea. She ended up getting an earful on how she was, at the moment, currently married but without a husband and would she really like to practice her mothering skills, because if she did, she was going to find out, the hard way, how a seventeen year old daughter could make her life a living hell. She had smartly backed down and let Brooke have her fun. Of course fun for Brooke was parties every other night, School Night be damned.

God, was there really so many events in one year? And why wasn't she made aware of all these before?

Ah yes. At the time Brooke, Peyton and Nathan were being ushered into the raging party scenes of Tree Hill, she, plain old Haley James, had been sitting on the wooden bleachers at Riverside knitting and watching Lucas and the rest of the guys play basketball. Or she was at the café. Or she was at the rooftop playing miniature golf. Or she was cooped up insider her room, reading.

Mournfully, she dragged herself away from the answering machine, plopping herself down on her bed, the little corner that was a constant reminder of how much things have change.

This room used to be her – no – their room. The bed, the corner when Nathan always piled his clothes, the pictures on the wall. So unbearably painfully familiar and now all gone. The memories were still here though; they seem to cling on the walls, on every inch of space around her. Every time she turned around, some small spot would remind her of Nathan. Another punishment to endure. She briefly wondered when exactly her life had gone so bad, so fast

She used to have a simple and happy life that had consisted of school and hanging out with Karen and Lucas. She _had _been happy. She might not have had the full attention of her family, but she hadn't been an abandoned angsty teenager either. She didn't have a jackass of a father and half-siblings running around town kidnapping her and throwing her on mud puddles. She had been happy. But she had always felt a certain emptiness gnawing achingly inside her.

And she could feel it now. If she just closed her eyes and be still for a second. There it was: a dark void. Empty. A large, gaping hole. A space that was sad and lonely. A space inside her heart.

Haley sighed and pushed herself further into the bed, watching with half closed eyes as Brooke moved in and out of the bathroom ranting as she tried on several dresses and several shoes and several clutch bags all of which Haley had never seen before. Brooke probably had another shopping spree today. And no, she would not even dare comment on that.

What happened to letting them have their world?

Nathan.

Nathan happened. The marriage happened. And then bliss and then music and then this.

Now she had drama. Oh and plenty of it too. To be fair though, most of the drama was largely all her fault, but still… still, she could never really think of being anywhere else but here – right at this very moment.

Missing Nathan.

She closed her eyes, plucked out the memory of seeing Nathan today at school, flippantly tossing their kiss as a nice little moment that was over. Baby blue eyes cold and hard, broad shoulders shrugging carelessly. It was as though the kiss hadn't meant anything to him at all when to her it meant that she could breathe again without the constant ache in her chest.

First the divorce and now this, she wondered what else Nathan could think up to hurt her.

The worst thing was, she could see how much this was hurting him too. She wanted to make it all better for him, for them, but he wouldn't let her.

A nice little moment.

She had never thought four words strewn together like that could ever make her feel so… hurt and lost and dammit, she could feel the tears forming behind her eyelids. She had promised herself that she'd be strong about this. She had hurt Nathan, now it was her turn. She shouldn't let everything little thing that he said and do cut her to pieces like this. She was determined to fight for her marriage and not be a baby about it.

She understood what Nathan was doing; understanding though doesn't make it any less painful. She had broken his heart, his trust, and worst, their vows. She had to regain them all back and if she has to suffer for that, then so be it. She'll show him. She's back for good. For always. For forever. She just needed him to believe in her again. In them, again.

"Tutor girl are you crying?"

If it weren't for the nickname, she would've easily thought it was Lucas asking her that question. Same worried, gentle voice. Only more… feminine. Letting out a wobbly smile at the thought, she pinched the bridge of her nose, swallowed the burning lump in her throat and shook her head. "No. Just tired."

"Well, you sure look like it." Brooke said after a full moment of silence.

Haley slowly opened her eyes. She wasn't sure if Brooke meant that she looked like she had been crying or that she was tired. Maybe both. "Yeah. I'm…" God, she wished her voice didn't crack like that. "I'm… fine."

"Well, if you say so." Brooke said, going back to dumping all her clothes on the floor, kicking them into a corner. Satisfied with maltreating all her dresses, she turned to Haley, twirling around, showing off the red dress that matched her lips and her shoes. "Hot or hot?" She asked.

Haley rolled her eyes. There had to be some internal switch inside Brooke Davis' head. It was impossible how she could switch from one emotion to another so effortlessly. "Smokin'." She finally answered without much emotion.

"Hm. Hopefully, the boys would be a _little_ more enthusiastic than that." Brooke smiled, her dimples deepening as she raised both her eyebrows in what Haley could only think of as Brooke's 'I'm about to do something illegal' look.

Haley smirked. Trust Brooke to be… well, so Brooke. Poor Lucas, though. Trying to remain a loyal friend, Haley thought she might as well get some inside information on who Lucas would be pitted against with tonight. "So, who are you going with?"

"Peyton. It's a We'll Let The Boys Drool From A Far Night for us. So."

Haley didn't know girls had nights like that. Thank God.

Brooke tilted her head, pouting at her. "I'd invite you but I know you'll just sulk, like the way you're sulking right now. And no one likes a sulker in a party and I'm definitely not bringing one." Delicately shrugging her shoulders, Brooke flipped her hair back and offered her a small smile. "Besides, it's the b-ball crowd and after the big brush off from today, I think its best that you stay here."

If Brooke was trying to be sympathetic, Haley really didn't feel it. She scowled darkly. B-ball crowd. Nathan's crowd. Great. Now she was banned in all the basketball-related parties. Even Lucas didn't mention this to her. She had never been a social outcast before; since she never really considered herself a part of the high school social scene, but this sucks.

"So much for Haley James-Scott Party Girl." She muttered sarcastically. Looks as though being roommates with Brooke didn't automatically mean that she'd have her own five minutes worth of footage in Drunken High School Girls Gone Wild.

Good thing? Bad thing? Not even a thing to begin with?

"See, if you join the cheering squad, it's an automatic invite." Brooke wiggled her perfectly arched eyebrows suggestively. "Another thing to list under the Pros of Becoming A Cheerleader."

Haley gasped as she sat up, glaring at Brooke. "Brooke! You did not read that list!"

Brooke smiled at her and then as though remembering something, suddenly frowned. "I'm a little hurt with the Cons, though."

And she did look and sounded hurt. Great. Now Haley felt bad. She hadn't meant for Brooke to find that list, let alone read it. "Brooke, I…" She began but stopped as Brooke dismissively waved her hand in the air.

"I am willing to forgive you, though, out of the pure goodness of my heart, if you'd just…"

Haley's eyebrows raised, her jaws slightly dropping, she let out a small noise of utter disbelief. "Pure goodness..."

"I don't know why you're being mean, Haley," Brooke continued as though she hadn't spoken, "when all I've been doing is constantly defending you from Pey Marie."

Now Haley was confused. "Huh? Who?" Having a conversation with Brooke was insanity. She had no clue of what or who they were talking about. And Lucas and Nathan thought that her incessant ramblings were bad.

"You've been poisoned by the media who had, for the hundredth time, portrayed cheerleaders as skanky, mindless," at this point Brooke's voice had gone several decibels past shrilly, "shallow, little hussies!" Brooke angrily stomped towards Haley, her eyes blazing with fury. "Of course, some of them are, like Rachel, but not everyone! And if you join _my_ squad, not only do I get the satisfaction of flat-out saying 'Hell No' to that bitch, it'll also show everyone that cheerleaders are smart girls too!"

"Wow, I didn't know you we're so passionate about the plight of misinterpreted cheerleaders." Haley couldn't help the slightly sarcastic tone in her voice.

Brooke obviously didn't appreciate it. She crossed her arms against her chest, glaring down at her. "Admit it; you used to mock us and now your roommates and friends with a _pom-pom_ girl."

"You're just loving the irony of this, aren't you?" Haley asked, hating how piteously she sounded, already knowing that she'd be saying 'Yes' soon enough. So it was true. No one could ever really say 'No' to Brooke Davis and that in itself was a scary thought. God help us all, Haley thought, murmuring a quick prayer.

"Irony? Irony? What _is_ _that_?! I don't see the irony in you joining the squad for me. All I'm seeing is what a great friend you are for helping me not get the skank that is Rachel into my squad."

"Alright, alright!" Haley said, throwing up her hands, trying not to get Brooke into another rant-fest. "And thank you, by the way, for not going through my things."

Brooke scoffed. "You'll come around, Tutor soon to be pom-pom girl. I've already said the magic word anyway."

"Magic word?" She hadn't remembered Brooke ever uttering the word 'Please'.

"Half-naked-Nathan."

Oh. That word.

"Brooke, that's not even a word!" Haley complained, trying to shake off the immediate mental image of a half-naked-Nathan popping into her head. Oh, god, hard ripping muscles, smooth skin, that oh-so-sexy (used to be dumb to her, but she had seen the light) nipple ring…

"Whatever. There's a hyphen somewhere there. Besides, I could already see you saying 'yes'. Feel free to wipe the drool off your face, by the way." Brooke said, smirking at her.

Groaning and shaking her head, trying to hide her embarrassment and consciously wiping the corner of her lips (and dammit, she had been slightly drooling!), Haley pouted up at Brooke. Who knew Brooke Davis could be intimidating like this?

"I'm not promising you anything, I mean, it's not like… I mean," She ran her hand through her hair, finally saying out loud the biggest reason why she shouldn't be in the cheering squad. One that she couldn't even write down. "Nathan loves basketball and he hates me right now and I just, I don't want to seem like I'm… intruding on it. I don't want to give him another reason to not like me."

Brooke rolled her eyes and Haley could swear she just heard Brooke mutter: Un-fucking-believable.

"Please, you in a nearly-non existent skirt, jumping around, screaming _his_ name, trust me," Brooke leaned down to sneer at her, "he's so not going to mind a little intrusion like that. Besides, do it for yourself, not for him. No, no, wait, do it for _me_."

Haley arched her eyebrows, wondering how Brooke can be a totally selfless, caring friend and then be a self-centered bitch all in the span of five minutes. Lucas must have a ball trying to placate Brooke and her many, many personalities.

"And Haley, word of advice, groveling much isn't really attractive." Brooke picked up her keys, twirling it around, a thoughtful expression on her face, the small smile turning suddenly mischievous.

"I wasn't groveling." Haley protested weakly. Having to defend herself to Brooke just didn't seem right to her. Never in a million years did she imagine that she'd be having this sort of conversation with Brooke Davis. Queen Bee of Tree Hill High. She straightened up and gave Brooke her best glare. "I bet the non-exclusive thing is just helping you a lot right now, isn't?"

Brooke's smile faltered briefly and Haley let out an internal whoop of delight. Ha! There! Take that!

It took Tigger a few seconds longer than usual to place an enigmatical smile on her face. "Yes and no. Sometimes. Maybe. Most of the time. See," She grinned at her, dimples deepening, "it varies. It's fun that way. Might work for you."

"I'm married!"

"Hello, wake up call. Do you see any husband around here? No? You know why, because there's none. By the way, just so you know, this party isn't just for me to be drooled upon, from a far anyway, I'm also going to help you with Nate."

No. Please, dear Lord, whatever Brooke was planning, it could not be good. "Ugh, Brooke, I appreciate it, I do. But…"

"If Nate asks where you are," Brooke went out, ignoring her completely, "I'd say you're out tutoring some hot, jack-ass, but probably sensitive-underneath-all-the-bluster-and-bullshit guy from the football team." She beamed at her, like it was the best thing that she had ever thought of.

Haley had to stifle a groan. She was never going to tell Brooke anything that involved her and Nathan. _Never_. "No, Brooke. Please. Don't."

"C'mmon, tutor girl, please? It'll be fun to watch Nathan try to internally contain his angry jealous outburst. He looks really demented when he does that. Clench jaw. Nostril flair. Frown. Blank expression on the face – oh, oh, wait, frowning again. Entertaining as hell, too."

"No, Brooke. Just… just…just don't tell him anything, okay?" She knew she was practically begging and if she had to, she'd go down on her knees and do the actual begging. Getting Nathan in a fit of jealous rage was not going to help her. At all.

Brooke pouted. "You're no fun." She let out a dejected sigh, shrugging her shoulders. "Well, I guess the no-comment will have to do." She began, as though talking more to herself than to Haley. "Nathan's paranoid anyway. I'm sure his over-active imagination will think up something worth getting jealous of. He gets jealous of the Rivercourt guys talking to you, including Mouth."

"I don't want to…" Haley began but Brooke was quick to cut her off.

"And Haley, please, _please_, don't tell me that you're just going to study or whatever it is that you do. I already feel bad leaving you like this." Brooke said, sounding genuinely concerned. "So broody and sad and just over all pathetic."

Haley really was torn between wincing and smiling. With Brooke, when something bad happened to you, it was as though it happened to her too, she cared that much. And the best thing about her, Haley discovered, was she would always try to cheer everyone up. Even though sometimes she could be a little tactless about it. Haley sighed, blowing a stray strand of hair off her face. "I've had a long day at Karen's, I'm just going to sleep it all off."

Maybe she'd wake up and realized she had been dreaming the whole time. She'd turn and Nathan would be there, by her side, lazily smiling at her, wrapping her hair around his fist, pulling her closer. Maybe he'd be naked. Actually, make that, the two of them naked.

"Sleep. How terribly exciting." Brooke said, interrupting her most recurring daydream. "Well, I gotta go tutor girl."

"Yeah, yeah, I won't wait up for you." Haley watched mournfully as Brooke sauntered over to the door. Another Brooke Thing. The girl never, ever walked. She sauntered and bounced. Every time.

"Stay away from the cookie dough. Oh, and if you need it, the vodka is underneath the sink."

Haley made a face. She didn't trust herself to speak either. It could cause world war three and she was secretly loving it, the way she and Brooke were getting along. Who would've thought?

Brooke grinned even wider. "And good luck with dragging Nathan to Atlanta, for your big family event whatever."

Blink. Door close. Party Girl, Infuriating Roommate gone. Silence.

Oh. Holy. Crap.

She hadn't even thought of that.

* * *

Sleep her ass. There was no way she could've possibly slept after all that had happened to day. So here she was, inside Lucas' room, pacing.

There were only five places in the world that she knew like the back of her hand, every tiny, little detail etched insider her memory: her old bedroom, the café, the Rivercourt, the tutor center and Lucas' bedroom. All five her private little sanctuaries. Away from the world outside. The apartment should have been her sixth, but it had been tampered with and the angry gashing pink paint was like a gaping wound. Painful. Real. Out of place. A reminder for her of how much she had screwed up and how badly she had hurt Nathan.

But no matter how bad things get, she always had Lucas.

So here she was now. 2am. Emergency best friend meeting.

If only Lucas was cooperating.

"Enough pacing." Shirtless, squinty eyed, rumpled bed hair standing at the ends and looking essentially like ass, obviously still buzzed, Luca glared at her, which didn't do so much, considering how laughable he looked right about now. "If you don't stop that, I swear Haley, I'm going to throw up."

"It's your bed." Haley reminded him. She couldn't quite get used to Lucas acting like a… well, a high school jock. In all their years of being best friends, he never showed any inclination towards being a party animal. He always seemed so… mature and everything else the high school boys their age did, it all seemed so beneath him.

But then again, there she was, married and with a rock tour underneath her belt.

How could they both have changed so much in just one year? It seemed impossible to her to have come along to this – to now and yet it had happened. And even if she wanted to go back to how things had been before Chris, something told her that it was going to a real long way back to that and that she shouldn't even try or wish for it, because that would be hoping for the impossible. It was over and done with. Finito.

She sighed. Never underestimate Fates and their twisted sense of humor.

"Ugh. Someday, I am going to kick Nathan's ass for this." Lucas mumbled, rubbing his face.

Haley ignored the urge flick Lucas in the head. He already looked like he was suffering from a massive headache but he was quickly getting on her nerves. He obviously didn't understand the gravity of the situation.

She hadn't told anyone yet about the sad, miserable state of her married life – or rather her unmarried life. She didn't want them to worry about her. She wanted to show them that she could deal with this – with everything that was happening to her, stand by her decisions, whether good or bad. Not telling them made it less real, less painful. To her, having lived most of her life independently, if things got beyond worst, that was the only time to tell her parents. If she had told them, it would be almost like admitting that she had screwed up her marriage beyond repair. It was just unacceptable.

But now, there was no escaping that. The thought of having to relive the whole experience to her mom and dad and ultimately to rest of her family was even worst than having to face all of them this weekend all by herself. They would want to know everything. Word per word. Every little detail.

Taylor was right. She was going to be the talk of their ridiculously insane clan. Sweet, plain Haley James: Married at 17. Heading for divorce at, surprise, 17.

"Oh, my aunt Louisa would just have a field day with that." She announced, pacing around Lucas' room. "She'd just love that, Luke. She would. I'm telling you, she'd eat it all up and spit it out and she'd blame it all on my 'hippy' mom. And of course, she'd have to compare me with her perfect little twin-beauty queens, Little Misses Atlanta circa nineteen eighty two, first ever set of twin ever to be crowned. God forbid anyone forget that, even though their combined high school GPA average couldn't even get past…"

"Haley, Haley," Lucas said, trying to grab her by the wrist and failing miserably at it. "Dammit, will you just stay put!" He beseeched her with bleary blue eyes. He tried once again, but caught only air.

So much for stellar basketball reflexes, Haley thought snorting. "Lucas, what am I going to do?" She asked, sounding as though she was on the verge of hysteria and there was her supposed bestfriend looking at her like she was some sort of apparition in his dreams.

"Just relax, ok." Lucas said, peering up at her, looking less than concerned and more than ready to crawl back to his bed and sleep.

Well, that did it. "Don't. Don't tell me to relax. I know I am being ridiculous, freaking out like this. But I want to be ridiculous. I _deserve_ to be ridiculous. I haven't been ridiculously freaked out like this in a long while Lucas. So don't sit there, looking like ass, telling me to freakin' relax."

That woke him up. Lucas groaned and threw up his hands. He would not be sleeping any time soon. Not with Haley in a state like this. "Ok. Fine. Go on, let's hear it."

Haley blinked at him, unsure of what exactly he meant. "Hear what?"

"Let's hear your ridiculous, insane, freak out rant, because I'm sure as hell that wasn't it."

She narrowed her eyes and flopped down next to Lucas, sighing heavily. "You're not being supportive."

"I'm sorry." Lucas said, suddenly sobering. He took her into his arms, letting her snuggle her head into his chest. "Look, Haley, I didn't mean to sound patronizing, ok?" He said regretfully, not wanting to hurt Haley's feeling. He was better than this and he should be. For Haley. "It's just that…" he let out a huge sigh, wondering how he could fix everything for her. "It's going to be fine." His voice was calm and gentle, slightly worried. "I've been to one of your James family reunions, remember? And nothing bad ever happens. They all just ignore you."

She scowled up at him. "Gee, thanks, for the love, Luke. And it's not _just_ a family reunion; it's my grandparents' 60th wedding anniversary. Seriously, were you listening to me at all?" She asked in an accusatory voice.

Lucas had the grace to look embarrassed and apologetic. "I am now." He assured her, giving her shoulders a gentle squeeze.

"They're probably going to renew their vows and anyone who's going to make a toast will make an example of my marriage. They will caution all my five year old cousins not to be like me. A failure."

"Hales," Lukas exclaimed, pulling her chin up so they were eye leveled. "You are not a failure."

She sniffed indelicately, pushing herself away from Lucas. "Yeah. Right."

"Alright, come here." He said, pulling her back into his chest, biting down the 'omph' of surprise as she practically knocked him down into the bed. "First of all, stop eating all those cookie dough." He muttered absentmindedly.

"Luke!" There was a warning note in her voice that Lucas was familiar with, thank God. Now was the time to quit with any further comment in reference with her cookie dough addiction. He looked at Haley for a full second, taking in her tired eyes and the drooping corners of her mouth. He really didn't like seeing his bestfriend this upset.

People – mainly Nathan – ought to give her some slack. She came back for fuck's sake. What more did that guy want? A blood promise to never, ever leave again? Besides, Nathan was the one who had the bright idea to let her out into the world. What did he expect anyway? A few shows and few concerts? Of course, Haley made some serious lapses in judgment, but Nathan should have known that sharing Haley with the world would have its consequences. And yeah, great job with giving Haley the knee-jerk macho-leave-me-now-leave-me-forever ultimatum.

Haley settled into Lucas' bed, arching her eyebrows as she watched him look down at her, all serious-like.

"You are a smart, beautiful…" Lucas began in all seriousness only to be cut off by Haley groaning loudly.

"Ugh. That is so not the right speech, right now." Haley muttered, extracting herself from Lucas' arms. Rolling her eyes at Lucas' confused face. Well, now that was disappointing, Haley thought. And there she was, thinking Lucas was going to offer her incredible words of wisdom.

"No?" Lucas asked, eyes brows raised, blatant ant perplexity written on all over his face.

Guys. Even Lucas could be so dense sometimes. It was unbelievable. Was it ingrained on their genes or what? "No." She shook her head, crossing her arms against her chest.

"Well, what do you want me to say?" Lucas frowned feeling miserable as well. He was used to being able to make everything ok – at least with Haley he was. And now, he couldn't even fix this. Granted it was something that his bull-headed brother should be fixing. But right now, guessing from the amount of beer and whatever alcoholic beverage Nathan had gotten his hands with tonight, Lucas couldn't count on his brother to get his head out of his ass anytime soon. The bastard.

"That you'll go with me and pretend that you're my husband?" Haley said, even though inside her head, she knew how incredibly stupid and not to mention disturbing that was. But what choice did she have? At least she would have Lucas by her side all weekend. It would definitely make things slightly better for her. Plus, she wouldn't disappoint her grandmother who absolutely adored Lucas.

Lucas shuddered. "Ok, now that was just seriously disturbing and forget cookie dough, are you on crack?"

"I think I should be." She mumbled sadly.

"I know what this is about Haley." Lucas said, finally giving up on trying to be gentle with her. A stubborn Haley was nothing compared to a stubborn Nathan. No wonder they both hadn't been able to fix their problems. Haley was doing her best to be all doe-eyed and submissive with Nathan and Nathan was probably loving every minute of it.

Or he could be just as disheartened to see Haley like this, who knew what was going on inside his brother's head. But this just had to stop. "This isn't about you being the hot topic of discussion. You never really cared about what anyone thinks, especially your Aunt Louisa. You know that you're practically the least insane person that's going to be there, you're the closest normal James..."

"Scott." Haley automatically corrected. "And I don't think I'm liking what you're saying, Luke."

Lucas took her hands and peered into her eyes. "You could deal with them talking behind your back. You've done it all these years. You can stand on your own there, no problem. You don't need me to be there."

"But I do." She insisted.

"Do you, really? Because I have a feeling that you'd rather be asking Nathan instead of me." Haley pouted up at him. And the look in her eyes was all the answer that he needed. "So ask him, Hales."

"I can't." She grounded out, her jaws stubbornly jutting out.

"Why the hell not? He's your husband."

"Because he wouldn't even talk to me! He'd been ignoring me ever since I got back home. And the only time he'd talk to me is to discuss the possibility of a divorce, the k-kiss that apparently didn't mean anything to him and… and… working with Chris again and not kiss him and run away and… and… and…" at this she had burst into tears.

Ok, for this, Nathan's definitely going to get a fist in the jaw, Lucas thought, gritting his teeth. Trying to calm his anger, he sighed and let Haley cry for a few minutes. When she started hiccupping, not a great sign, he rubbed gentle, soothing circles against her back. "Haley, c'mmon, don't cry. You know I hate it when you cry. I don't know how to make it all better for you." Lucas admitted, "And I don't like it. Help me out here, ok?"

She sniffled, looking up at him, tears still streaming down her cheeks. "I want to be brave again Lucas. Why can't I be brave again? I want to tell him that the kiss meant the freaking world to me. I want to tell me how upset and angry I am that it was just a nice little moment for him that he could walk away from. It was like being given hope and having him snatch it back again. I want to tell him that I don't care about my music if he wouldn't be there to listen to it at the end of the day. I want to tell him how much I'd love it if he could come with me to my grandparent's wedding anniversary so I could show him off to everyone and tell them that here's the man I married, here's the man that I love. Here's the man that makes me unbelievably happy, but I can't Luke. I can't because I screwed up!"

"Haley," Lucas began, not knowing what else he could possibly say to that.

"And I can't stand the thought of asking him only to hear him say no."

"He wouldn't." He assured her, hoping he sounded as convinced as he felt. Nathan wouldn't do that to her. He might be a total jack-ass right now, but Lucas was sure that Nathan would never let Haley do something like this alone, especially when it's obvious that she's really scared about it. He knew how much Nathan loved Haley's family. More than that, he knew how much Nathan loved Haley.

"You don't know that." Haley answered, her voice small and pained. "I just… I can't, Luke. I just can't."

"Yes, you can. I know you're a lot of things Haley James-Scott," Lucas said, smiling down at her and pinching her nose. She tried to wriggle away, slapping his hands, sputtering curses. "But I know one thing for sure…" he said, finally letting go.

Haley rubbed her nose and glared at Lucas. "Oh, yeah, what is that?"

Lucas handed her a box of Kleenex. "You're the bravest girl I've ever met."

"Oh, Luke." Her sigh was watery and tremulous. "I'm sorry to be such a mess."

"I know. Speaking of, you really need to blow your nose, it's all snotty."

Haley let out a half-smile, punching him on the shoulder. "I hate you." She mumbled before blowing her nose, just as she was told.

"Doesn't matter, I still love you. And so does Nathan. He'll come around, you'll see."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. And if he doesn't, I'll kick his ass."


	2. Chapter 2

**We're A Happy Family  
**By Grace

Email: purplewitch10yahoo(dot)com  
Standard disclaimers apply. Me don't own.  
Pairing: Laley and Baley friendship. Naley and some Brucas. I do like Peyton, I just can't seem to fit her in this story.  
Rating: PG 13  
Spoilers: Some Season 3 (What-if sort of Season 3 episode)  
Summary: Haley receives an invitation to the grand 60th Wedding Anniversary of her grandparents. Let the madness begin.  
Author's note: Thank you so much to everyone who had read and left a review. It really means so much to me. I hope that you guys would enjoy the update. CCs are much appreciated.

**Part Two: You Should Have Never Opened That Door**

Brooke Davis didn't like mornings. Contrary to popular belief, held probably by the people closest to her, how incongruous (a word she had recently learned from Haley) by the way, she wasn't a morning person. She doesn't wake up oh-so bouncy and cheerful and happy.

Ok, so most people do get to see the ever ebullient (another Haley word) Brooke. But that was because she had showered and everything. Her waking up mumbling, eye fluttering open moments were far from all smiles.

Well, maybe not liking mornings would be a little lie. She liked it. It was peaceful (another term for lonely) and always pretty (another term for empty). What she really didn't like was sleeping. Sleeping, after all leads to morning and worst, sleeping meant being all by herself. Not a big fan of that. In fact she avoided it as best as she could, hence the numerous parties that lasted until the hours of between 3 and 4 in the morning. At least by then, she'd be too tired or too drunk; it all depends, to ever worry about sleeping all alone.

Of course the numerous parties tend to have consequences. Like major post-party What-The-Fuck-Happened-Last-Night moments of painful, almost humiliating blankness. Mornings like that could easily get anyone down, because it's a scary thought, waking up in stranger's house, in a stranger's bed, with no recollection whatsoever of the night before. Only that she'd been drinking and that she had been drinking pretty much the whole time. Of course, it wasn't a nightly occurrence, but on the occasion that it does happen to her, there was always Peyton's bedroom to crawl into.

Lately it had been Lucas'. But that's another story altogether.

Today wasn't any different. Bevin threw a bitching party last night and when she rolled out of her bed, all she could remember was: cup after cup after cup of beer and Peyton pushing her through the door. She groaned out loud and snuggled deeper into her pillows, eyes bleary, slanted and still trying to adjust to the light that was flooding inside their room. And again, she just absolutely hated waking up like this. Because this meant that today, she'd just have to be extra cheerful, extra bubbly. Fight off the loneliness that was quickly creeping in.

"Good morning, Sunshine." She greeted herself. "Time to get up, Pumpkin." Sunshine and Pumpkin. She had heard parents call their daughters that and no one was going to deprive her of anything, not even silly nicknames. "How was sleep, bunny? Remember anything from last night? Anything worth mentioning or gossiping about?" She went on, the morning ritual she had adapted ever since she was six.

Haley had once commented on how weird that was, greeting yourself in the morning. To which Brooke replied was totally like calling a slut a whore. Brooke had to just raise her eyebrow and remind Haley of how _she_ always mumbles "'Night Nate, love you," into her pillow every night.

The girl had it bad. Sometimes it was hard to watch and listen to Haley moon and brood about Nathan. Sometimes, she just wanted to be her. So in love. But then, again, being in love meant being constantly worried about getting hurt in the end. Why can't life ever be simple?

"Rise and rinse, Brook Davis." Haley's voice interrupted her thoughts.

"Speak of the Devil." Brooke muttered, glancing at her roommate who was standing by the door, holding a tall glass of… milk, probably. How boring. "Where have you been?" Brooke asked with a sigh, finally sitting up and wincing at the sudden headache that sliced into her skull. She glowered as Haley sat at her bed, mutely offering her the glass of milk.

She watched, crossing her arms against her chest as Haley's eyebrows rose, her face spelling disbelief. "Tigger, shouldn't I be asking _you_ that question, since you're the one with a killer hangover? Here." She said, pushing the glass into her chest. "Drink this."

She gave Haley a distrustful glare.

"Trust me, you'll love me for it."

Brooke highly doubted it. Haley's idea of comfort drink was a glass of cold milk. Or tea. Yuch. Raising her own eyebrows in silent question, Brooke glanced down and was greeted by a familiar sight of red sloshing liquid. She gasped in surprise. A glass of Bloody Mary. Brooke smiled half in amusement and half in utter gratefulness. "You remembered?" She mumbled, wanting to hug Haley, but drinking up instead. First thing first: get the hangover out of the way, show appreciation later.

Haley made a face of disgust as Brooke arched her neck, her nose practically inside the glass. "I still feel that it's wrong to cure a hang-over with another cocktail, but hey, if it works for you."

They sat there silently for a few minutes, with Brooke emptying Haley's bloody Marry, note to self, remind Haley to add little more vodka and a little less tomato juice. But still, for a novice in mixing drinks, it was good. She could already feel her headache receding and some of the memories from last night slowly registering into her brain.

"So, uhm, what happened last night?" There was a slightly guilty tone in Haley's voice and Brooke just had to roll her eyes.

"With Nathan you mean?" Haley began to protest but she cut her off with a wave of her hand. "There really isn't much to tell." She said with a shrug. Aside from getting drunk, aimlessly flirting with boys who were not Lucas, she had also successfully gotten Nathan into a raging, impressive fit of sulking. The guy could give Haley a run for her money as far as sulking was concerned and all she had to say was: Haley. Alone at the apartment. Crying herself to sleep. Again.

Okay, maybe the 'Good work, jackass,' did the trick, but then again, the mere mention of Haley's name always sent Nathan into an emotional turmoil of sorts. She sighed and shook her head. Why was she subjecting herself into this again? Getting in the middle of Nathan and Haley's marriage was like living with her parents all over again. She glanced at Haley's openly hopeful face and at the glass of bloody Mary that she had just practically inhaled. "There's nothing to worry about Haley. He wasn't throwing himself at girls and being his past slutty jock-whore self. He just sat at one corner, glowering at the wall and… oh!" Brooke exclaimed, as another tidbit of memory slipped in, "He did try to knock Tim's teeth out when Tim pushed some sophomore slut in the making into his lap."

Haley scrunched up her face, wincing and smiling at the same time. Really, the girl needed to practice all her facial expressions in the mirror and get rid of _that_ look. "Oh, well, I… I didn't mean about Nathan! I was actually more worried about you and Lucas." She admitted, tucking a strand of hair into behind her ears.

Well, then, Brooke thought. The girl was not as hopeless after all. She'd have to schedule Haley to refine some of her girly-ways. There were too many Haley mannerisms that reminded Brooke of well… _guys_. It was good thing that Haley had gotten herself out of the clutches of the Rivercourt guys. There was something so tragic about growing up with no girl friends at all.

"So that's where you spent the night?" Brooke asked, tilting her head, wondering what it was exactly that Lucas had told Haley. She was ever so rarely jealous of Haley. But whenever Lucas was concerned, she could always feel that little tug of I wish I was Haley inside her heart. She wished she could know Lucas the way Haley does. Sometimes she even wished she'd be best friends with Lucas, that way, she wouldn't have to fall in love with him over and over again.

Ugh. Lucas Talk. And so early in the morning too. Why does Haley have to be the kind of person who didn't avoid any topic of conversation during, Brooke glanced at the clock, 6 in the morning? With Peyton they always waited until they've exhausted themselves inside the mall before they're forced to talk about whatever issue they were dealing with. They stack up with happy memories for the day before going in to the Pit of Woe Talk and usually, by that time, they wouldn't have any energy left for anything but:

_"Nathan's such a jackass to me." _

_"Yeah.__ So, my parents won't be back until next weekend, can I stay here or something?"_

_"Of course, Brooke."_

And that was it. End conversation.

Was this how Lucas and Haley spent most of their time together? Talking and brooding over stuff? If it was, well, Brooke wasn't so hot on the idea of being Lucas' best friend anymore. Boyfriend sounded so much fun and at least if Lucas' wanted to talk something to death, they could make out afterwards. She smiled to herself, remembering Lucas and his kisses and oh, his hands too. He's got such amazingly hot hands….

"Yeah," Haley was saying, forcing Brooke out her reverie, "He looked really… well, wasted, as you can imagine," she met Haley's pointed look and pouted up at her. "He also looked kind of… I don't know," Haley continued, running her hand over her hair, "like you just… stomped on his heart or something."

Brooke winced. She remembered Haley saying something about being careful with Lucas' heart but what about her heart? She knew it was incredibly selfish of her but she didn't have anyone to look after her the way Haley would look after Lucas. She had Peyton of course, but the whole Lucas thing had so totally messed up their friendship. There were certain things that they could no longer talk about without dredging up the past. Arguing with Peyton about Lucas and her feeling for Lucas was just too bizarre it was tiring. She had to look after herself. And the non-exclusive thing was her only way to guarantee that her tattered heart remained as is: tattered but not altogether dead.

And there was Lucas too. It was no fair. _He_ didn't seem to be in anyway – at least not outrightly – hurting. In fact, he seemed to be getting along just fine… with Rachel Resident Tree Hill Slut. Why was it that she should feel bad about the non-exclusive thing when Lucas was practically having upright-sex with that skank? He probably didn't tell Haley _that_.

"Look, Haley…" Brooke began but Haley wasn't having it. She stood up and paced agitatedly for a few seconds before finally stopping, sighing and throwing up her hands in the air.

"Ok, I know I am so not the best person to say this after all that I've done and how messed up my life is right now, but I get it, ok. Luke hurt you pretty bad and you're… you're being cautious. No one can blame you for that. Who'd want to get hurt again, by the same person, right?" Brooke watched as Haley rambled on and wondered again, for the millionth time what the Scott boys found amusing about this sort of rambling. She had seen the look of actual delight on Lucas and Nathan's face whenever Haley started with her inane ramblings. It must be the genes, Brooke concluded.

Haley glanced at the pictures posted at her How I Spent My Summer board and Brooke had to wince, okay, this is it. She told herself, this is where Haley would start calling you a major slut out to break her best friend's heart.

"I know you don't want to get hurt again Brooke," Haley said, sitting down again next to her, taking her empty glass inside her hand, gripping it tightly as though it was some sort of life line. "But Luke's really sorry and he wants to show you how sorry he is and if you'd just let him… just give him a chance… I know him Brooke, I know how strongly he feels for you. Please, I am asking as his and your friend, please give him the second chance that he deserves. That you both deserve."

"Oh, Tutor Girl…" Brooke was too chocked up for words. She reached over to hug Haley. She'd never thought that Haley would take her side – well, not exactly take her side, but at least understand where she was coming from and not berate her as Peyton had been berating her over the last week. Peyton was all for tough love and Brooke needed that, but sometimes, she needed the supportive kind of love too.

She felt Haley stiffen and then: "Oh, my God, it's almost seven! Oh, my God, Brooke, we're going to be late for school!" She was on her feet grabbing her stuff and muttering God knows what underneath her breath, something about being late in the Tutor Center.

"Oh, relax, Haley, I'll just drive extra faster." She answered, languidly stretching.

Haley grabbed her by the elbow pulling her up. "Oh, no you won't. You'll drive carefully and within the legal speed limits." She thrust the emptied glass of bloody Mary into Brooke's hand. "Breakfast." She told her, pushing her out of the room, words of protest falling unto deaf ears. "Then dishes, 'cause it's your turn now," Brooke whimpered, she hated doing the dishes, "then bath and then school. Now hop on it Tigger, we've got," Haley stopped by the bathroom, frowning, obviously in deep concentration over something. She'd get that way a lot of times and usually, it meant she was thinking about something intense, like school or Nathan.

"Haley?" Brooke asked in concern.

Haley stepped into the bathroom, snapping her fingers, "We've got an hour and 12 minutes and a half to get ready for school and assuming there won't be any traffic down at Main, we'll be in school at least five minutes before the first bell."

Brooke's jaw dropped, "Tell me you didn't compute for that inside your head Tutor Girl. Please. 'Cause it's real scary."

"Move now!" Haley screamed at her slamming the bathroom door shut.

_

* * *

_

_First thing first: get the hangover out of the way, show appreciation latter. _

And showing appreciation now. Brooke thought, smiling to herself as she skipped her way across the street, eyes zeroed in on her target.

Let it never be said that Brooke Davis is an ingrate. Even though Haley had bitched all the way to school about the possibility of being late she had already been thinking up of ways to show Haley her thanks, not just for the blood Mary and the pep talk this morning, but also for joining her cheering squad.

Brooke smiled to herself. Haley hadn't said anything outright, but she could already see Tutor Girl folding. She knew it must have been a difficult decision to make; judging from Haley's many reasons why not to join and this ought to sweeten the deal. Besides, Haley deserves a break from all these marriage crap that she had been dealing with lately.

Balancing her book bag and a dozen envelopes tucked underneath her arms, Brooke smiled even wider. She hadn't actually been in this genuine good of a mood in such a long time and who better witness this morning miracle than a sourly Scott boy?

Last night, she noticed, actually, everyone who was at the party, noticed that he had come home drunk and alone and Brooke, ever the bringer of joy decided that wallowing in his self-induced misery was just annoying to watch. Besides, people had not been able to concentrate on her own misery. This Scott boy was definitely hogging all the limelight and she was tired of having to hear how sad and lonely and oh-so-broody he looked. That had to stop. And here she was, solving everyone's problem.

Wasn't she just the greatest friend ever?

Trying to suppress her giggles, she planted her five-hundred-dollar boots firmly on the ground and knocked on the door, humming to herself. Oh, she was just so good at this! Everyone ought to be thanking her.

She tilted her head, waited for a few seconds before rapping her knuckles once more. From inside she could hear faint sounds of music, too soft for her to recognize, but she could tell it was some lame assed break up song. She rolled her eyes. Was there no end to the drama that was Tree Hill? She wondered, as she impatiently tried to look through the windows, knocking on the glass as well. "Hello? Anyone home?"

He better be here. He hadn't been in homeroom and she skipped Rivercourt which probably had been a bad call, seeing that this was a Scott for chrissakes and whenever there's a ball and a hoop, it'll be swarming with. Well, whatever, if he wasn't here, then she'd have to drive all the way there and skip English and History. She wouldn't be missing much, plus she'd be able to avoid seeing Rachel strutting through the hallways wearing the beloved, familiar blue and white cheering uniform.

Ha. Well, she'd let the slut enjoy it for a while. Brooke could barely stop herself from squealing with delight. She could just imagine the look on Rachel's face when she'd finally tell her that she was out of the squad. Bye bye bitch. Maybe she'd even snatch the pom-poms away from Rachel. That would give the moment a whole range of dramatic flair. The skanky-hoe won't be wearing that uniform anymore. At least, hopefully, not for long.

Although _long_ was what it was taking for someone to answer this damn door. When she was about to knock once again, the door finally swung open, the lyrics of _So Sick_ wafting through the air.

The surprises would just never stop.

Seriously? Brooke thought, fighting off the urge to roll her eyes. _Seriously_? Mr. Hot Shot was brooding over this sort of crap? She bit her lips. Oh, Jesus, do not snicker, she told herself, internally snickering.

"What do you want?" The voice growled at her and she was forced to look up, biting the insides of cheeks, trying her best not to look condescending. She raised her eyebrows at the disheveled hair and the darkened blue eyes.

"Good morning Nate!" She greeted cheerfully, bouncing on the soles of her foot, giving him her best ever Brooke be-dimpled smile.

After a whole second of silence, with him standing in front of the doors, arms crossed against his chest, towering over her as though he was about to either just ignore her or slam the door on her face, it became obvious that he wasn't having as great of a day as she was. "Again, Brooke, what do you want?"

Brooke sighed and rolled her eyes. "Why aren't you dressed yet?" She asked, keeping her tone light and friendly. "Big day tonight. Midnight Madness." She grinned up at him. "Remember last year's Midnight Madness? The party at your beach house where everyone got wasted?"

"Yeah. Good times." He deadpanned, moving to shut the door.

"No, no, no, no. Wait." She wedged her boots against the door, gritting her teeth. "You're just so full of happiness today, Nate, it's so refreshing." She mumbled, yelping as Nathan's only response was to firmly push the door against her boots. God, she forgot how sarcasm always worked so well with Nathan. This was why she never ever hanged around him even when he and Peyton were still dating. The boy was just unbelievably rude, you'd think being born with a golden spoon shoved up inside his mouth he'd have at least learned the basics of being polite, but no, not Nathan Scott. "Just give me a second ok." Brooke said, glaring up at him, finally giving up any attempt at small talk.

She was doing this for Haley. She reminded herself. Keep calm and don't lose your temper. She let out a huge sigh, shaking her head, thinking up of a way to bring up the reason for her early morning visit. She couldn't very well do this on school, although she had hoped she could but then possibility of Haley or Lucas knowing about her little talk with Nathan was greater if she did it along the hallways of Tree Hill High, where there were always ears and mouths everywhere. God, the pace was gossip central. Everyone knew everyone's business and this has to be totally covert and stuff.

"Somebody better be in the hospital Brooke, because if not, then go away."

What? Oh. She had forgotten about Nathan. Why Haley ever want to get back with Nathan was just beyond her.

"Fine. Here." She shoved the envelopes into his chest and glared at him when he made no move to take them from her hands. She wasn't going to deal with a pissed off Nathan. No way. She was a good person, a great friend, but she was no saint and she certainly was no martyr. Besides, this could only end up in bloodshed, so this just has to do. "They're yours. Mails. Bills. Porn subscription. Divorce papers. I don't know. But they're all addressed to you and I don't know _why_ they keep being sent to _my _apartment." She tapped one of the envelopes with her perfectly manicured finger. "_My _address, _your_ mail. Fix it."

Brooke wanted to actually gloat at the fact that whatever she had said seemed to have erased the eerie blank look on Nathan's face. His blue eyes blazed with anger and he was clenching his jaws so tightly, it looked like it was taking a lot out of him not to hit her. She smiled up at him sweetly. "Bye Nate. See you at school. I'm definitely looking forward to Midnight Madness later." She said, her voice all syrupy-sweet. She watched, pleased with herself as Nathan cringed.

"I have a nice little surprise for you." She added, winking at him. This time she didn't even wait for his response. She turned her back and sauntered off, snorting as she heard the door slam shut. She had to glance back just to make sure that Nathan hadn't shattered the windows. God, the boy was angry as hell. She paused, frowning. Maybe it wasn't such a great idea to try and fix things up for him and Haley. But then again, it was already done and she wasn't going back there to get the stupid invitation back. No way in hell.

Besides, the ball, as they say in basketball talk, was now in Nathan's hand. The next move would be all up to him.

* * *

_Divorce papers_.

What the fuck does Brooke Davis know about anything anyway? Nathan thought angrily tossing the pile of crap that Brooke had just dropped off. He watched as it missed the table, falling noiselessly into the floor. A cascade of papers spilling every where. No divorce papers there, he was sure of that, but it still didn't change the fact that Brooke had just thrown the words so effortlessly, as though it didn't mean anything.

He wanted to smash something, break something. It was bad enough that she had given him all sorts of hell last night at the party when she had chided him for making Haley cry.

He made Haley cry.

What a fucking laugh that was.

He wasn't the one who up and went to abandon their marriage.

He wasn't the one who kissed another guy behind his back and lied about it to his face.

And yet it was his fault that Haley was alone and crying.

The thought of Haley crying herself to sleep was like a kick to his guts. Every time.

God, he didn't want her crying. He thought he did. He thought that it would be her punishment for making him miserable last year, but he couldn't find it in himself to feel vindicated. Because, fuck it, it was the last thing he wanted to feel. Especially when he knew that it wasn't just Haley's fault. It was his too.

He could forgive and forget about her kissing Keller. He had done worst when he was dating Peyton, he figured he deserved that little Karma. What he was having a hard time letting go was the fact that she had left him – that he had drove her away.

Nathan took a deep breath, trying to calm himself as picked up the letters, clutching it tightly in his hands, crumpling the edges.

_"They're yours. Mails. Bills. Porn subscription. Divorce papers…"_

Did he expect something more or less or whatever from Brooke Davis? This was the girl who loved to make people miserable, he reminded himself. He had seen Brooke do it several times and ok, so maybe, he had no right to judge, since he practically did almost everything that Brooke did, but it still sucked to be on the receiving end of Brooke's Bitching Hour.

What Peyton ever saw in her to ever consider her as her bestfriend was beyond him.

Obviously, Brooke was just trying to get a reaction from him, trying to goad him into something. Brooke had always been manipulative that way but something bothered him more and it was that fact that _obviously_ Haley had mentioned their talk about divorce to Brooke - of all people! He had expected Lucas to come barging here, demanding to know what the fuck was going on, in fact, he was even counting on it.

He hadn't, not even in his wildest dreams, thought that Brooke Davis would be the first person to nag him about the divorce. Sure, he knew that Haley was staying with at the apartment with Brooke, something he still felt incredibly guilty about. He was mad at her, but she was still his wife, he should have at least made an effort and made sure that she had a place to stay before he went to basketball camp. From the letters Haley had sent him, he found out she had stayed with Lucas until the summer was over, at least up until Lucas' mom had come back from wherever she went to. Netherlands or whatever.

Nathan snorted at that. He and his dad were just so good at wrecking people's lives. He knew that his father, was personally responsible for Karen's trip abroad. God, first with Keith and his almost-marriage to that woman his father had hired and then, for kicks, he goes on to mess up Karen and Andy's relationship. His father just drove everyone away.

And apparently, so did he.

Nathan ran a hand through his hair, resuming his thoughts on Brooke and Haley.

Brooke wouldn't be such a good influence on Haley. Especially, with all the guys coming over to their apartment and oh, God, all the parties that Brooke seemed to attract. What's next? Haley joining the cheering squad?

There was a reason why he hadn't approved of Peyton's friendship with Brooke when they were dating and he was sure as hell not all too happy with Brooke being his wife's possible best girl friend. In some weird alternate universe, fine, maybe they could be friends. Wait. No. Not even then. It just didn't seem _right_.

He figured it was more out of Haley's lack of options. A year ago, Broke didn't even call Haley by her first name, always with that Tutor Girl stuff, always with the voice laden with mockery that pissed the hell out of him. Brooke had a way of saying it as though it was something Haley should be ashamed of. Of course, over the year things had changed and Haley and Brooke seemed more friendly towards each other but not to the point of being fucking BFFs I'll-Tell-You-About-My-Screwed-Up-Marriage-Over-Manicure.

Jesus.

Couldn't Lucas be enough?

Although Lucas being Haley's best friend was another huge fucking draw back.

The truth was he was pissed not about Lucas lying to him when he went to see Haley. He was annoyed with that, not angry. He was furious with the fact that all it had taken for Haley to come home was Lucas. If he had known, he would've dragged his brother's sorry litte ass to see Haley during the tour. It would've saved them a lot of misery and grief.

It seemed to him as though he wasn't even second on Haley's priority. It was tour with that fuck-bag poser Chris and then Lucas and then school and then finally, him and their marriage.

Well, fuck that! If Haley didn't put that much importance to their marriage, he could do the same thing, no problem. He had basketball of focus on. He had always had that. Nothing had ever been more important to him.

Not until he met and fell in love with Haley.

Ugh. He when had he turned into such a fucking little pansy. No wonder his father was worried about him. He should be too. He had been ready to throw away the opportunity of a life time to be at High Flyers for what? For her? For their marriage.

He had been out of his mind and now he was back on being focused on what mattered the most.

Except… except, Nathan couldn't and would never deny the fact that Haley was and still is the best thing that ever happened to him. To lie about that would be to betray his own self. It was just that, he was still so fucking angry. Not with her but with the situation that they were in. Why couldn't it be ever be so simple?

He glanced at the envelopes and muttered another string of curses. Did telling Brooke about it, did that mean that Haley was taking it seriously? The divorce stuff?

He didn't even know why he mentioned it. He hadn't even looked up any information about divorce or separation or annulment. It was all his father's doing. If his dad wasn't hammering him to play better basketball, it was to 'get rid' of his wife.

God, he could still remember the look on Haley's face when he had said that instead of anullment they should look into divorce. Her eyes had darkened, kind of like the way it always did whenever she wanted him to make love to her, only this time, it darkened because of the tears filling up her eyes. Tears that he had caused.

He hadn't meant to so callously throw the D word at her. It just happened. He wanted to hurt the way she had. He figured it would make them even, would help make him feel better but the moment the words left his mouth, it felt as though his tongue had turned into ashes. His whole fucking had mouth tasted like fucking ashes.

He could still remember that night. Nights like that, when the sky was clear and everything seemed so peaceful and perfect, he and Haley used to walk home from the café or from school or from their dates. He'd hold her hand and keep her close. Just the smell of her shampoo was soothing to him. The feel of her warmth seeping into his shirt, settling into his skin, into his heart was enough. Nights like that, he knew that he didn't need anything else. Just as long as he had Haley. Even basketball didn't matter so much.

And that night, with the scent of her, the feel of her so close and him unable to even touch her hand, it just brought out all the frustration and betrayal and hurt that he had been feeling. He had shoved his hands deep into the pocket of his jeans, clenching his fist so tight, when he got home he found bloodied marks on his palms. But it was all he could do stop himself from grabbing Haley and taking back everything that he had just said. She had looked so… sad and lonely standing in front of him. So small and lost, her lower lips trembling as she tried to fought back the tears.

He hated hurting her. And yet it was exactly what he was doing. Why couldn't he stop hurting her? Why couldn't she stop hurting him?

Dammit. He should have never said anything about divorce. It was the last thing on his mind. Check that, it had never been on his mind. Never. Not for once. He had to find a way to take it back but he just didn't know how, didn't know if he could. It made him feel so incredibly, fucking weak. He had lived all of his life without needing anyone as much as he needed Haley and knowing exactly how it was like not to have her… it sucks like hell. In fact, it was hell.

Was he willing to suffer through all that? Because what was the guarantee that he'd never lose Haley again? What if he took her back and somehow, she realized, yet again, how he was holding her back? And was it really fair to her to trap her again into his world?

Because that was what sucks the most. Knowing that there could be something better out there for Haley and she couldn't, wouldn't have it because of him.

He'd want her to be happy but if he wasn't enough, if their marriage wasn't enough then why tie her to him? Even if it meant that he'd suffer every day of his damn life.

At least he had had her for a while, Nathan thought miserably. At least he'd gotten to know what it was like to really love a person and be loved in return. At least he'd have all those bitter-sweet wonderful Haley memories - although, he'd the first to admit that it wasn't enough. God, it would never be enough. He'd always want more. He'd always want her. Always love her. Always want to be loved by her, just her - no one else, nothing else would matter.

But he wanted to prove it to himself, to her, to everyone else that he could be strong too. He was so sick and tired of being vulnerable of always depending on her. He has to learn be strong for her. For them.

Even if in the end, it means that he'll have to let her go.

Even if it kills him.

Nathan sighed. He just had to stop thinking about it. About Haley and everything else. It was just too much. He had never been able to sleep any more than a few hours every night just thinking and thinking and dreading every morning, every day that he had to pretend like she didn't exist, that it didn't feel like he was dying a little every time he'd walk away from her. If he kept this up, he wouldn't be able to fight against the tide of depression and anger that was engulfing him, pulling him down.

Brooke was right, he had the Midnight Madness to think about. Everyone would be there and he had to be in his best. Basketball always had a way of taking things off his mind. It was so natural for him to be on the court, ball in his hand and the basket in front of him. Out there, nothing could hurt him - he had to concentrate on that - at least for now.

Nathan absentmindedly went through his mail, carelessly tossing all the bills aside. Now that he was back living with his parents, he didn't have to worry about money so much, probably the only good thing to come out of the whole miserably fucked up situation. Which was sad, if he thought about it, but then again, he was already used to his parents using money to buy his love. Not that they ever needed to but it wouldn't hurt to not let them know that.

He has such a wonderful life. Just fucking fantastic.

He sighed as he placed another letter from some college basketball coach in a neat little pile, knowing that his father would like to read that one. Everything about basketball, his father has to know. It was the only thing his father was ever really interested in. He wondered if his father would even be talking to him if it turned out that he sucked at playing, if he ended up not having any talents as an athlete. For a brief moment, Nathan felt his heart painfully squeeze, but he let go of that pain just as quickly as it had come. Dan Scott was something alright, but a father, he clearly wasn't. Nathan had accepted that sad fact a long, long time ago, there was just no point in letting it mess him up anymore than it already has.

He was almost about to toss everything else into the trash can when a slip of cream colored envelope fell on the table.

_To Mr. and Mrs. Nathan Scott_

The delicate engraving was enough to take the wind from out of his lungs and despite the excessive girly script, he'd never seen his name with so many curves and rolls and what-nots, he felt a definite tug of pride - a sense of rightness.

_Mr. and Mrs. Nathan Scott_

He had never seen it like that.

He read it out loud, smirking a little. God, he loved that. It reminded him of how he belonged to Haley and she belonged to him. He turned the phrase over and over inside his head, his stomach and heart doing some wicked somersaulting.

Picking it up with more care than he'd like to admit was necessary, Nathan gently tore the envelope open, silently reading the fancy invitation, all thoughts of basketball, of everything else, leaving his mind.

* * *

"Where have you been?" Haley asked her as soon as she stepped inside the Tutor Center. Brooke could still not believe she was inside this room, let alone know of its actual location and existence. Things were definitely changing and for once, it just might be something that was good for her. "Lucas said you missed English, he's a little worried about you."

Brooke scowled. "Nice to hear that he's a _little_ worried about me. From a guy confessing that he loves me, hearts and flowers and everything in between." She tried to keep the disdain in her voice, even though on the inside she was thrilled beyond belief. She knew Lucas loved their English class more than anything else and there was nothing that distracted him from listening intently to their teacher painfully going on an on about whatever it was that they were supposed to be reading, Brooke was never really sure. It was nice to know that despite Lucas' obsession with books and English and dead authors, he still noticed that she was gone. It sure made up having to deal with Nathan's assy self.

Haley rolled her eyes, "Well, you know what I mean. Anyway, I'm supposed to ask you and tell him later on, which is ridiculous by the way, seeing that you're not even fighting and you flirt with each other all time anyway."

"Had some business to take care of." She answered brightly, easing into one of the seats, watching as Haley fixed her schedule.

Haley raised her eyebrows, "Should I be worried, this business of yours that you had to take care of, it's not something illegal, is it?" She asked scrutinizing her.

It was a good thing that Brooke was a trained liar. A total pro. "Tutor Girl, with me, you should always be worried." She idly picked up one of Haley's paper, trying to feign interest. It was a list of students Haley was currently tutoring. She read off the names, making the appropriate facial expressions and comments, which Haley tried to ignore. "Anne Hoffman slept with half of the soccer team which would explain why she's failing Calc." Brooke said with a nod. "The girl's like, two notches sluttier than Rachel. Good thing she's more into long muscle-y legs than greats abs."

"Oh, by the way," Heley said, interrupting her, "you didn't happen to see any formal, girly, possibly scented invitation by the mail, have you?"

"No. Why?" Brooke asked nonchalantly, sounding bored. She glanced at her watch and smiled, hopefully by now, Nathan would be stewing over said, MIA invitation.

Haley made a face, sighed and shook her head. "Taylor must've gotten the addresses mixed up or she didn't mail any invitations at all. Surprise, surprise." Haley muttered, scowling a little.

"Taylor?" Haley has like, a dozen sibblings and hundred and eighty five cousins, it was hard to keep track who was who. "Taylor who?" Brooke asked distractedly, trying to read Haley's tutoring schedule for the day.

"Taylor my older sister, who slept with my husband who -"

"Shut up!" Brooke exclaimed, interrupting Haley. She rudely grabbed the paper from Haley, ignoring the dark, thick line from Haley's pen slashing into the table.

"Brooke!" Haley yelped out, trying in vain, to erase the accidental vandal.

"Haley!" Brooke screeched at the same time, keeping the paper away from Haley's reach. "You're tutoring Brent Amis? How could you not tell me?" She asked in a feigned hurt and betrayed voice.

"Give that back!" Haley said, moving to snatch the paper from her hand. "And I never thought you'd be interested in anyone I was tutoring." After a few struggle, with Brooke pouting and looking put off, Haley had managed to get her now crumpled and torn schedule back.

"Normally, I'm not interested," Brooke began, letting Haley glare and glower at her, "but have you not seen his abs? Don't tell me that you never tried to look down on his shirt before while you were tutoring him." Honestly, was the girl really blind? Had she been permanently blinded to all that was good in the male population of Tree Hill High just because she had tied the knot? Was that some sort of side effect of marriage?

"Ugh, there are so many things wrong with that sentence Brooke." Haley complained, still trying to smooth out her schedule.

"Whatever." Brooke said, dismissively flicking her wrist. "You're having him in less than a few minutes, lucky you, so I have to make this quick."

Haley blew off a few strands of her face with a sigh before looking up at her with raised eyebrows. "And here I though you were here to ask me if I wanted to have lunch with you."

Well, ooops, for that. She hadn't counted on Haley wanting to have lunch with her, since the girl had practically been skipping lunch ever since she got back from the her tour. If she wasn't going to be working at Karen's, she was hiding at the Tutor Center. The only time Brooke had seen her actually have lunch was with Lucas or any of the Rivercourt guys. "If you're interested in hearing Peyton verbally tear you down, then by all means you're cordially invited. I could referee."

Haley's smile instantly evaporated and Brooke couldn't help but feel a little sorry for her. "Still mad at me huh?" Haley asked in a rather small voice.

Brooke patted her arms, "Don't worry about her. You've just proven her wrong by coming back and she doesn't know how to deal with that She's used to them being gone, away, for good." She had been trying to convince Peyton to give Haley some slack, but she figured Peyton was looking for someone to direct all her Birth-Mom and Post-Jake aggression with. It was just too bad that Haley was easily the best and only moving target. Besides, Brooke didn't want to have to tell Haley that maybe Peyton was just being a little protective of Nathan. Granted that back then, Peyton's relationship with Nathan was based on her masochistic tendencies and Nathan's inability to be a decent guy, still, those two had spent a lot of time together and Brooke figured that they've both have come to terms at being post-break-up friends. A good thing, of course, but telling Haley that wouldn't really be helpful to anyone, at least not right now.

"I'm not sure I understand," Haley answered, nodding her head, "but I guess I'll keep clear of Peyton until she regains her sanity. So what is it that you want?" She asked, pulling out her books and arranging them in that completely creepy kind of way, books to the left, pencils and pen perfectly lined up on the right.

Brooke shuddered, almost exactly the same way Haley would shudder, every time she'd catch her arranging her tops in order of sluttiness. "Oh, well, _that_. I was just wondering if maybe you could come by later at the gym, I have to work out on the finishing touches of the routine and I was hoping you could… uhhm, check my History paper again."

Haley raised her eyebrows at her, snorting none-too-gracefully. "I've already checked it twice this week, it's good to go."

"No, but you don't understand." Brooke whined, "I made some, uhm, last minute revisions. I thought maybe I should add, you know, something more about, ugh, the ugh, assassination of ugh, that guy, that started World War One."

"Francis Ferdinand?"

"What? No. Isn't that like a band, or something?" Brooke asked, now totally confused. She was sure she had heard that name from Peyton and not from their history teacher. Haley actually snickered and Brooke felt a little self conscious, "Well, if you're gonna laugh at my lack of knowledge…"

"Sorry." Haley said, raising her hands as though in surrender. "And okay, I'll check your papers, although, don't think that I don't know what you're trying to do."

"_Me_? And what am I trying to do? I'm just trying to run a squad and pass history at the same time!" Brooke protested, getting up and staring down at Haley.

"Ugh-huh." Haley said, shaking her head, still looking at her with that knowing 'I've Got You' look which was really annoying as hell. The know it all.

"It's not my fault that Bevin can't remember to do the high kick first and _then_ the cartwheel and Theresa is always messing up the line, always going to the right when I meant _my_ right and not hers! She keeps bumping into Peyton. And Rachel!" She began, already fuming at the mere thought of watching Rachel do the routine almost effortlessly and flawlessly. "Rachel is too busy eyeing Lucas on the court! Bitch."

Haley raised her eyebrows at her, "Rachel isn't always looking at…" Haley began and was instantly cut off when Brooke glared at her, almost daring her to continue whatever it was that she was going to say. Haley shrugged and went back to writing something down at her notebook, probably a post-it reminder to see her at the gym later. The girl had some serious organizing skills. "And don't you mean the cartwheel first and then the high kick?" Haley continued, looking up at her, "And by the way, Theresa is at the end of the line, Peyton dead center, right next to you."

Brooke grinned at her, clapping her hands in delight. "I so knew that you'd be able to memorize the moves Tutor Girl! Why don't you just come and practice with us, forget the History paper."

"Because I'm not a cheerleader, Brooke."

"Well, not for long." She said, winking at her, turning around and effectively, just on time, bumping into Brent's waiting arms. "Oh, hi." She greeted, in her best breathless voice. "I'm sorry, I didn't see you there." She mumbled softly, running her hand down at Brent's chest towards his fabulous abs, letting her fingers linger there for a second.

"It's… it's… it's… uhm…" Brent mumbled, flushing, clearly at loss for words. So adorable.

"It's ok Brooke, you can go now." Haley muttered, trying to save Brent from making a right fool out of himself.

"Thanks, Haley, I'll see you later." She added winking at them both.

Oh, Midnight Madness is so going to be great. Better than last year.

Because this year, she'd get to be there to support Lucas and on top of that she'd have her chance at humiliating Rachel and having her squad back all to herself.


End file.
